Matching device.



No. 786,245. PATENTED MAR. 28, 1905.

v o. w. BRAY. MATCHING DEVICE.

APPLICATION IILED IAN. 3,1903. 7

2 SHEETS-SEEET 1,

I I I I I i I l l i l I l l I I I l l l PATENTED MAR. 28, 1905'. G. W.BRAY. MATCHING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 3. 1903.

g\ N IIVINTOR 2 SHEETS-$11321 2.

WITNISSIS UNITED STATES Patented March 28, 1905.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES W. BRAY, OF PITTSBURG, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO AMERI- CAN TINPLATE COMPANY, OF ORANGE, NEIV JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEIV JERSEY.

MATCHING DEVICE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 786,245, dated March28, 1905.

Application filed January 3,1903. Serial No. 137,714.

T 0 all whom, it nuty concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLEs W. BRAY, of Pittsburg, Allegheny county,Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Matching Device, of whichthe following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, inwhich Figure 1 is a top plan view of my improved matching device. Fig. 2is a sectional side elevation. Fig. 3 is a partial front elevation, andFig. 4: is a detail view of the stop.

My invention relates to the class of matching devices for metal platesor sheets, and is designed to provide an improved apparatus of thischaracter which will square up the pack and feed it forwardly out of theapparatus.

In the drawings, 2 represents a feed-table on which the plates or sheetsare fed either singly and successively or in piles or packs by fingers 3on sprocket-chains 4c, passing over sprocket-wheels 5. The plates orpacks slide down upon an inclined table 6 until their forward endsstrike the stop-fingers 6 at the entrance to rolls 7. The table 8 of thematcher is preferably inclined and is provided with squaring-up sideguides 9, mounted on arms provided beneath the table with collars 10,which slide upon transverse shafts 11. The collars are simultaneouslymoved toward or from each other by means of levers 12, pivoted tosupports 13, depending from the table, and connected by links 14 withtwo-armed levers 15, mounted on shaft 16. This shaft is rocked by apivotal rod 17, connected at its outer end to a hand-lever 18, by whichthe guides may be simultaneously moved in to square up the platessidewise and also to grip the side edges of the pack and hold the platesin proper position as they are fed forward into the pair of rolls. Theshaft 16 has a spline connection with the levers 15, which are movedalong it by depending forked supports 19 upon the table when the tableis moved endwise. The table has a central dovetailed guide connection 20with its support and is moved longitudinally by a hand-lever 21, whichoperates a rock-shaft 22, having a lever 23, with a pivoted link 24,which has a if desired, and is limited by a stop 32.

loose slotted connection 25 with a depending bracket on the table. Thehand-lever is extended at 26 and is connected by pivoted links 27 withalever 28, secured to a rock-shaft 29, having loose connection with thestop-fingers 6. These stop-fingers are provided with collars 30, whichare cutout for a portion of their circumference, as shown in Fig. l, tocontain the key 31 on the shaft, so that the shaft may rotate a part ofa revolution before it acts upon the fingers. The arrangement is suchthat when the parts are in their normal position the operator moves inthe squaringup side guides, which may be held either by the operator orby a notched latch device. The operator then swings the lever 21 andmoves the keys 31 in a clockwise direction, allowing the stops to dropor swing down. This movement may be assisted by springl's, T 1e furthermovementof the lever 21 acts through link 24, which has thus far movedidly, to positively move forwardly the table, side guides, and packuntil the forward end of the pack enters the set of rolls 7 The operatorthen releases the side guides and the pack feeds forwardly into the pairof rolls with the plates in their correct relative position.

The advantages of my invention result from the gripping of the pack andthe feeding forward of such gripped pack, since this prevents displacingof the sheets or plates and holds them in proper relative position whenthey are carried out of the matcher, also from the squaring up of theplates in the matcher with the mechanism for feeding the squaredup packforwardly.

The device may be used either where separate sheets or plates are fed inone upon the top of the other into the matcher or where a pack or packsare fed in.

The device for gripping the pack may be varied so as to engage the packin another manner, the feeding-out mechanism may be changed, and othervariations may be made without departing from my invention.

I claim- 1. A matcher having squaring-up mechanism for the sides and endof a plate-pack,

mechanism for feeding separate plates one upon the. other into thematcher, and mechanism for feeding the squared-up pack out of andforwardly from the matcher; substantially as described.

2. A matcher having an inclined table, a movable stop at one endthereof, movable side guides arranged to square up the sides of aplate-pack and mechanism for feeding the pack forwardly out of thematcher; substan tially as described.

3. A matcher having a movable front stop in the line of feed, mechanismfor feeding plates into the matcher, means for squaring up the sides ofthe pack, mechanism for operating the stop, and mechanism for feedingthe pack forwardly out of the matcher; substantially as described.

4:. A matcher having front movable stops in the line of feed, movableside guides, and mechanism for dropping the stops and moving the packforwardly out of the matcher; substantially as described.

5. A matcher having mechanism for gripping a pack of plates therein, andmeans for feeding forward the gripped pack; substantially as described.

6. A pair of Working rolls, and pack-feeding mechanism comprising meansfor gripping a pack of plates and means for feeding the gripped packforwardly into the bite of the rolls; substantially asdescribed.

7. A matcher having squaring-up mechanism, grippers arranged to engagethe side edges of the pack, and mechanism for feeding the grippers andgripped pack forwardly; substantially as described.

8. A matcher having a forwardly and downwardly inclined support,mechanism for feeding the separate plates forwardly and dropping themupon each other on the support, squaring-up mechanism, and mechanism forfeeding the squared up pack out of the matcher; substantially asdescribed.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand. I

CHARLES \V. BRAY.

\Vitnesses:

GEO. B. BLEMING, L. M. REDMAN.

